Thanksgiving has always been known for the food. It's the food holiday. Foodies and non-foodies across America unite with forks and empty bellies to share a very stressful and (hopefully) enjoyable meal.
But here's the thing: Thanksgiving's a great food holiday, sure, but I think that it has too much hype. As I was thinking about the upcoming holiday season, I came to a realization that Thanksgiving's never all it's cracked up to be. I also realized my excitement for Christmas being right around the corner, not just for the typical reasons, but also for the food.
Okay, we get it, Christmas is amazing as it is. There's an overall joy in the air and the holiday cheer really does make people nicer. You can just feel the love as people come up with thoughtful gifts. And come on, mistletoe. If you've never kissed under it, you're missing out.
So as much as it pains me to give Christmas even more glory (because it kind of steals the spotlight), I must give it another reason for being amazing. Under further investigation, I think you, too, will see why Christmas just wins as the best food holiday.
It's Open For Interpretation
Across America, Thanksgiving food is almost universal. You have your turkey, stuffing, potatoes of some sort, pies, etc. It's an unwritten rule that it isn't Thanksgiving without the staples. Christmas, on the other hand, is open for every family to come up with on their own.
There's home-cooked meals or a fancy night out and an array of whatever foods families desire. Christmas is an event, but free of the rules that Thanksgiving holds. My family actually changes up our Christmas meal every year. Some families stick with tradition. Even some families who don't celebrate Christmas make a tradition of going to a certain restaurant or eating a certain meal. And that's okay! Because Christmas is open to interpretation.
It Isn't Just Celebrated in America
Even though other countries do have Thanksgiving on different days throughout the year, Christmas just about falls on the same day for everyone. Countries all over the world take part in the holiday in their own ways with their own foods and traditions.
Before anyone gets angry at me for assuming that everyone celebrates Christmas (which, duh, they don't), I have personally noticed a huge increase in people who may not be Christian partaking in the Christmas spirit. And as I mentioned before, Christmas is open for interpretation. It can be an opportunity to spend time with family or go out for a meal.
Christmas Cookies
Santa doesn't need all those cookies for himself. Christmas cookies are delicious, period. Personally, I've seen a few wars break out in my family over which type of pie we are eating for Thanksgiving. But cookies are the type of thing where even if you aren't a big fan, you'll slip one off the plate when no one's looking anyway. Don't even pretend that Pillsbury sugar cookies aren't just about the best thing on the planet.
Holiday Drinks
As much as I love the pumpkin spice trend, there's something about ginger bread or peppermint flavored things that just does it for me. Add to the list hot chocolate and eggnog and you've got a star studded cast of delicious, sugary drinks.
Christmas Ham
Enough said.
My Personal Favorite
In my opinion, the best detail about Christmas is the fact that you can hide the calories under a nice ugly sweater. No one ever has to know the difference if you ate one, two or twelve cookies...
To Conclude...
It doesn't matter if you celebrate Christmas or not. This holiday season, take Christmas as a time to explore its wonderful food options and try and come back to tell me that it isn't the superior food holiday. Happy holidays to everyone celebrating anything this month. May your stomachs be full and your taste buds satisfied.